On The Radio – ISU and Des Moines partner on big data research project

Jake Slobe | January 2, 2016

This week’s On The Radio segment discusses the partnership between Iowa State University and Des Moines on a project that will attempt to change the way cities deal with climate change and sustainability.

Transcript: Iowa State University and the city of Des Moines have teamed up on a big data research project that could transform the way cities handle sustainability and mitigate climate change.

This is the Iowa Environmental Focus.

The ISU researchers are developing a prototype decision-making tool that integrates data-driven science and human behavior to address environmental and social challenges.

“Big Data for Sustainable City Decision-Making” was funded by ISU President Steven Leath’s initiative for interdisciplinary research. Leath’s presidential initiative provided $375,000 in seed grant funding this fall for the three-year research startup and $50,000 last year for project planning.

The research is one of several projects the presidential research initiative program has funded so that faculty teams at ISU can tackle emerging societal challenges. The goal is to help the collaborations grow into well-funded projects that promote big thinking in data-driven science.

The project brings together 16 campus researchers from 14 academic disciplines, including natural and social sciences, engineering, design, and humanities. They will be partnering with Laura Graham, the sustainability officer in the Des Moines City Manager’s Sustainability Office.

For more information about the research project, visit iowaenvironmentalfocus.org.

From the UI Center for Regional and Environmental Research, I’m Betsy Stone.

Iowa Climate Statement 2015: Time for Action

Chris Anderson, Assistant Director of the Climate
Science Program at Iowa State University, spoke during the press conference for the 2015 Iowa Climate Statement at the Iowa capitol in Des Moines on Monday May 11, 2015. (Joe Bolkcom/Twitter)